The two types of voidable contracts are contracts signed without capacity and contracts signed without mutual assent. Capacity and mutual assent are two indispensable legal elements of a valid and enforceable contract. Examples of voidable contracts reflect instances where a person would be at a distinct disadvantage in making a decision to enter into any binding agreement or where his ability to understand the consequences of his actions are in question.

A contract is a binding agreement between two or more parties with a form and function that is prescribed by law. In most jurisdictions with a common law legal system, a contract must satisfy certain elements to be valid and enforceable by the court. Contracts that are typically valid under the law are made between two or more parties with the capacity to enter into a contract and who do so by mutual assent and for valuable consideration. In other words, the agreement must be between right-minded legal adults who sign the contract under their own free will and are exchanging things of value to each.

The two types of unenforceable contracts are void and voidable contracts. Void contracts lack an element needed to make a valid contract. It is void immediately because it was never legally valid in the first place. Voidable contracts are only unenforceable at the request of one of the parties. On its face, a voidable contract contains all of the legal elements of a valid contract. It is only when some outside factor is applied to the circumstances surrounding the making of the contract that the court can decide it is unenforceable.

A claim of lack of capacity will make a contract voidable, but only at the option of the party lacking capacity, not at the option of the other party to the agreement. Minors lack the capacity to contract. Any minor individual who enters into a contract before the age of legal majority has the option of voiding the contract once he becomes a legal adult. The mentally incompetent also lack the capacity to contract unless the contract is ratified by a legal guardian. A person who is drunk, on drugs, or under the influence of any intoxicating substance can claim a lack of capacity once returned to his senses.

Mutual assent is also a necessary element in an enforceable contract. A lack of meaningful assent on the part of one of the parties will make the contract voidable at the option of the party who was harmed. Whenever a person is determined to have signed a contract under duress, under undue influence, or because of fraud in the inducement, the court will find there was never a true meeting of the minds regarding the desire to enter into a contract. An example of this type of voidable contract is a marriage contract entered into by a person induced by misrepresentations regarding the spouse’s identity.